Of Grandmas and Guardian Angels
by I'mcalledZorro
Summary: When Mac & Jack are in a dangerous situation someone surprising comes to the rescue. Set while they were in the Army.


HI! So this is my first MacGyver fic. I owe a lot to gaelicspirit who took time out of her very busy schedule to beta this, and make my words into a story. Thank you! Of course I don't own any of this (a girl could wish right? LOL) I hope you enjoy! If you do please let me know!

Of Grandmas and Guardian Angels

Jack was on Overwatch as he and MacGyver were searching a mostly-deserted village for a reported bomb. Nothing had turned up, yet. Jack was situated on top of the highest building in the village—a three-story edifice that had seen better times. He surveyed the surrounding buildings while keeping an eye on his partner down below, scurrying from one house to the next, when something in the building next door to him caught his attention.

"Hey, Mac," Jack called over their comms. "I think I see something in the building next door, the one with the funky windows. It's on the second story, but be careful. The floor looks rickety, like the big bad wolf could blow it down." Jack paused for a second. "Hey, partner if you let it blow up, you might be doing them a favor," he said with a grin.

" _Very funny_ ," was the only answer he received.

Jack was still grinning as he watched MacGyver approach the ramshackle dwelling. "I've got you on my scope, watching your approach."

Mac gave his a thumbs up.

"Glad to see you are as talkative as always."

That earned him a shift in the finger Mac decided to show him.

"How rude! Alright Mac, as much as I hate to say it, but you might want to shed that bomb suit. I'm not sure if that floor will hold the weight of both you and the suit. I mean, you don't weigh much, but the suit does."

Pausing outside of the building Jack had scoped, MacGyver took his partner's advice and peeled off the bomb suit, setting it carefully beside the front door, then stuffed the supplies he might need in his various pockets. After he determined he was ready, he entered the door and quickly made his way inside.

 _"Entering the stairwell,"_ came Mac's voice via their comms. Through the scope, Jack saw him exit the stairs as MacGyver updated him on his progress. _"At the top, starting my approach to the device."_

"Copy. Whatever I saw is in the corner closest to me," Jack replied.

 _"I have a visual on it,"_ MacGyver answered. _"And I know, be careful."_

Jack grinned at the mocking tone in his young charge's voice. Jack was silent as he watched his partner's slow progress across the treacherous floor. MacGyver knelt in front of the supposed bomb. Jack could see him moving stuff around and finally he heard Mac's voice.

 _"It's not a bomb. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be a decoy or just a spot to dump extra parts."_

Jack thought for a second. "Anything dangerous?"

MacGyver's reply was quick, _"Not in their hands."_

Jack grinned at his friend's assessment. "Ok, head back down. I'm calling this mission a bust. Plus, it's almost chow time, and you know how much I enjoy the Salisbury steak"

A snort, then, _"Ten-four."_

Jack intended to keep an eye on his young partner as he crossed the floor and started the decent before he grabbed his gear to rendezvous with MacGyver. He was thinking about all the steps he had to walk down to get back to the Humvee when he suddenly his partner disappeared through the floor.

Mac barely had time to shout before striking the ground.

"MAC!" Jack shouted into the comms. He grabbed his bag and rifle and booked it down the stairs, cursing every step as he went. Once he reached the alleyway that ran between the buildings, he changed the frequency on his comm.

"Base, this is Snakebite 1."

The reply was instant. _"We read you Snakebite."_

"I need a medic at my location. Snakebite 2 fell through a second story and is currently not responding."

" _Copy that. We have a medic 10 minutes out. Call sign is Speedy."_

"Copy, Snakebite 1 out."

Jack was relieved. Speedy was a good medic. He quickly changed the frequency back to the one he shared with Mac and skidded to a stop as he reached MacGyver's limp body. Surprisingly, the whole building hadn't come down—just the part that Mac had been standing on.

MacGyver was lying on his left side, facing away from Jack. Right then, Jack was mad that he had insisted Mac take off the bomb suit; it might have provided Mac with some more protection. Carefully, he removed the few small pieces of debris that had fallen on his partner.

"Hey, Mac. How ya doin'?" Jack drawled somewhat breathlessly.

Receiving a low groan in response, Jack fell to his knees beside his buddy. Supporting the back of Mac's head and neck with his splayed hand, he gently turned his partner over. The first thing he noticed was the blood running down the side of Mac's face. He didn't see any more visible wounds under all the dirt and dust from the fall, but the lighting was not the best, and Jack wanted to be sure that MacGyver wasn't hiding any serious injuries.

"I'm OK." The whispered announcement startled Jack.

"I think I'll be the judge of that." But Jack was relieved. "What hurts?"

"Head, side, left arm, and leg…but I'm OK," Mac tried again. This time actually opening his eyes.

Jack huffed a laugh, "Your definition of 'OK' sucks."

Unbuckling the chin strap, he gently eased Mac's helmet off and fished some gauze from his standard-issue field first-aid kit, pressing it gently to the obvious wound on Mac's head. Next, he pulled out the morphine auto-injector, but Mac pushed his hand away.

"I swear, it's not that bad." MacGyver's voice was stronger, so Jack obeyed his partner's request. "I think I'm going to live, ok?"

"Indeed, MacGyver, Indeed." Jack murmured as he continued to assess his partner's condition.

"OK, Teal'c. I thought you said you didn't watch it" Mac questioned.

Jack snorted. "I decided to give it a go. It isn't a bad show about those Air Force weenies." He heard a vehicle pulling up, and over the radio.

" _Snakebite, this is Speedy. I'm headed in."_

"Ten-four, we are in the red-door building," Jack quickly replied.

A second later Sgt. Gonzalez appeared in the doorway smiling a greeting that Jack was about to return when he saw the other man's expression suddenly shift to terror just before he shouted, "INCOMING!"

 _Meanwhile back in Texas…._

Betty Dalton was at the same place she was every Sunday at 11:00am: in the choir of Sandy Springs Baptist Church, sitting next to her best friend, Thelma Lou.

"So, how's the family?" Thelma asked as she settled into her usual seat.

Betty shorted, "Which ones? All the girls are doing good. They remember to check in with their Granny. Cindy is going to graduate this spring."

An aborted laugh sent a glare in Thelma's direction.

"One can hope," Betty amended "Nick called last Monday. He's supposedly bringing a girl home to visit, but you know how that goes. My Jackie boy, well, he knows how to make his grandma suffer! I still haven't heard from that rascal. His last letter home was all about his new friend MacGyver."

Betty started to say some more, but the organ and piano started playing. She rose and sang with the rest of the choir, but her thoughts were still on Jack. She didn't normally dwell on her family serving as she had already been through all that with her son, but today it was like a constant ache. When the rest of the choir sang, 'Sweet low, Sweet Chariot' she began to pray that a band of angles would protect her Jack—and his friends. She felt Thelma's eye on her and after finishing her prayers offered a watery smile to her best friend.

 _Back in the base medical tent…._

Jack was convinced that the devil designed all the chairs in Medical. MacGyver was sleeping off the pain meds he had been given, looking all of twelve years old lying in the hospital bed. Jack startled when a voice came from the doorway.

"Hey."

Jack squinted up and saw Gonzalez standing there.

"Hey, yourself," Jack greeted back, uncoiling himself from the torturous chair.

The two men greeted each other with a quick hug, then stepped back, preferring to stand at each other's side.

Speedy gestured at the sleeping MacGyver. "Is it me, or does he look way too young? How's he doing?"

Jack chuckled. "Man, we were born old. He's doing pretty good, all things considered. Mild concussion, bruised ribs, broken wrist, and severely twisted ankle. Knowing Mac, he'll be up and around pretty soon. He hates being still. Thanks for the rescue, by the way."

Speedy rocked nervously. "I didn't do much."

Jack smiled, "You got us out of there in one piece. That counts." Jack noticed his friend's uneasiness, "What's up man?"

Speedy shook his head. "You're gonna think I'm crazy."

"Well, brother, I already know _I'm_ crazy, so lay it on me."

Taking a deep breath Speedy told his tale.

"You know how I was sheltering in the doorway while we were being shelled?" At Jack's nod he continued, "Well, I had a pretty good line of sight on you and MacGyver, so I tried to keep an eye on your position in case we had to dig you out of the rubble." He took a quick, fortifying breath. "It doesn't make sense, I know, but I swear I…saw an angel protecting you guys. I'm not saying an actual _person_ , but the outline of…a figure. With…with wings. I saw the debris glance off his _wings_ , man. I don't know if I should report to psych or to go to church more often." Gonzalez let out a calming breath and ran his hand through his closely-cropped hair.

Jack nodded and took a deep breath, taking the report in stride. "Well, my Granny always tells me that she prays for my guardian angel to be on his toes. I guess yesterday he was. This is a war zone; most of us won't think you're crazy. I sure don't. Thanks, man."

With another hug Speedy left, still shaking his head. Jack tried to make himself comfortable in the horrid chair. Giving up, he sighed and looked over at his sleeping partner.

Thinking about what Speedy had told him, he smiled and whispered, "Thanks Granny."


End file.
